Pope says Ukraine war fuelled not just by 'Russian empire'

The war in Ukraine is driven by the interests of several "empires" and not just of Russia's, Pope Francis said in an interview published on Friday.

Francis said the conflict was fuelled by "imperial interests, not just of the Russian empire, but of empires from elsewhere."

The pontiff was speaking to Italian Swiss television RSI, in an interview due to be broadcast on Sunday. Extracts were published Friday by Italian dailies La Repubblica, La Stampa and Corriere della Sera.